Brooklyn diocese reaches record $27.5M settlement with four victims of abuse by lay educator

The New York Diocese of Brooklyn and a co-defendant have reached a $27.5 million settlement with four men who were sexually abused as boys by a lay church education director, the diocese said Tuesday night.

Each of the young men will receive $6.875 million from the diocese and an affiliated after-school program under terms of the settlement, said Ben Rubinowitz and Peter Saghir, the attorneys for the young men, who have remained anonymous.

In terms of individual payouts, it is the largest settlement on record involving abuse of minors by Roman Catholic Church figures, almost double the amount received by two victims in Rockville Centre, New York, in 2008, according to records maintained by Bishop Accountability, a nonprofit that monitors abuse allegations against Catholic priests and officials.